I am thinking about expand my desktop workarea. I am a software developer with 2 monitors (1280x1024). My first thought was buy 2 larger monitors (1920x1200) and use them in portrait mode. Another (better) idea is one 30" (2560x1600). Is better for some things i like to do. But these monitors 24" or 30" is rare and expensive in my country.

Another problem is my old eyes. They ok now but I feel a little tired and I guess I could not read tiny letters like I do today. I need more visible content in my screen with bigger letters.

So I got an idea. Why not buy a 40" or maybe 46" LED TV (1920x1080) and use as huge desktop? Because 1920x1080 is small for my needs. But this resolution is good for games, videos and images of all types. The problem remains on character content.

Not so much. Most applications I use today have a good zoom capability and I expect down size of default Windows fonts decreasing DPI with a hack provide by another question.

Well, what I have imagined is has text capacity in screen equivalent to 2560x1600 by zoom out or by lower DPI on Windows settings. I am guessing (well, I did some math too) I have all space for text that I want and letters bigger enough to my almost tired eyes, and Full HD TV (I work at home). I can buy a rig to enjoy for many years and for many tasks.

If I go to 40" LED (cheaper than a 30" monitor), my eyes will travel same I do now with my 2 monitors. If I go to 46" (more expensive, but is a TV too) I will need more distance from monitor (good thing) and I probably will travel eyes (only for work) a little bit more (I think will not be a problem).

Although I choose good fonts for this, I am not sure if I will get a comfortable experience on work (I am almost certain this will works very well for funny things).

I doubt someone did something like this but what you can say about my ideas. Any additional issue to considerer? Any technical problem or pitfall on that?

My special fear is about the screen go to uncomfortable feeling or too ugly to work in daily basis.

1 Answer
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I am using 26" 1080i Bravia TV as a monitor (1280x768) at home. Hooked it up to PC once just for fun and now will never go back. Matrix quality is amazing (S-PVA), no latency, excellent colors, everything is super sharp and clear, easy for eyes (even though it is 60Hz). It is connected to TV cable, xbox and pc at the same time so I have all entertainment I need right in front of me. If I would be shopping now for new TV I would go with 32" 1080p 120Hz panel which should make perfect monitor for home (browsing Internet, playing, watching tv).

But for work I prefer two monitors, you can minimize/maximize windows independently, and total resolution is huge which is important, small resolution might be pretty annoying for coding.

I am not so sure about 40" or bigger, in the shop they look small but when you bring them home they seem much bigger. Having 40" on the table I think will be uncomfortable. Also be careful with TV max resolutions, most 1080p TVs don't support 1080p from PC, only 1080i, so you need to read specifications carefully.